Apple iPhone SE to Lead Cupertino’s Local Production Plans in India

When officials taking part in the negotiations that will see Apple begin producing iPhones in India said that it was almost a done deal, speculations started coming in claiming that the iPhone 8 could ship with a “Made in India” tag.

Well, this dream has become true, but at least for the entry-level iPhone SE. According to the latest reports, the tech giant will commence its India operations with this 4-inch iPhone that was released early last year. Apparently, Cupertino will start by producing between 300,000 and 400,000 units of the phone.

Apple’s operations will be taking place at Wistron’s Indian plant located in Peenya and despite the fact that the Indian government hasn’t fully agreed to Apple’s tax concessions, the American company is reportedly ready to begin producing the iPhone SE in the country. If all goes according to the new rumors, Apple will begin operations in April, which is just a little over a month away.

This is a huge step by Apple – and India as well – bringing a local plant to a market that is seen as the future for smartphone OEMs. Now that the company will be able to work from India, it remains to be seen whether the 2017 iPhone 7S, iPhone 7S and iPhone 8 will also be manufactured in this plant – but it highly unlikely.

As noted earlier, the iPhone SE was launched in March 2016 and is positioned as the budget model in the company’s setup. It brings a very interesting setup on the table, combining the goodies of the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6 and iPhone 5S into one very capable compact device. In India, the launch price of the iPhone SE was approximately Rs 39,000. But in a market where budget phones command a price tag of Rs 10,000 and below, the iPhone SE was still untouchable for many locals.

At the moment, the iPhone SE can be purchased in India for anything between Rs 27,000 and Rs 30,000, however, having it produced locally is seen as an even better way of bringing down the price. This should also apply to other devices that Apple will manufacture locally.